Vancouver’s wine festival welcomes back wines of the world

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The Vancouver International Wine Festival is back. The post-pandemic, slightly pared-down May show will relaunch in a tasting room flooded with late-evening daylight. Despite all the challenges of organizing a global event in a tight time frame, the 2022 wine fest will feature 100 wineries.

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The short lead time to get the show organized and running means there will be no country theme this year, although organizers are hinting South America is ready to return as the festival theme next year. In the meantime, the show will spotlight the Vancouver hospitality scene, inviting attendees to use the hotels and restaurants while they are in the city for the show to thank some of the hardest-hit businesses by COVID and its many challenges.

The good news is the international tasting room will remain the same size, affording attendees plenty of room to move around; the 60/40 split of international producers alongside 41 wineries from British Columbia will pour some 500 different labels for the discerning crowd of wine lovers.

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In preparation, we have poured over the entry list to develop 20 of the most exciting people, places or wines that you will encounter in the tasting room. Elsewhere in Salut, look for our annual themed tasting lists that take you behind the booths searching for the most exciting wines in the room.

An insider’s guide to the people, places and wines of the international tasting room

Discovering new wines, new grapes and new regions has always been the festival’s strength. Be sure to stop at Vini Alois from Campania, Italy. Twenty-seven years ago, the Italian government launched a project devoted to cultivating grape varieties that survived phylloxera but were no longer in commercial production. Vini Alois has been a champion for the forgotten Indigenous grapes resuscitating the likes of Casavecchia, Pallagrello Bianco and Pallagrello Nero. Don’t miss this table.

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Arboleda has been on a mission in Chile’s Aconcagua Valley to make high-value, quality Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay. The Errazuriz-owned venture will send the affable Michel Couttolenc, vice-president of sales, Americas, to answer your questions about Arboleda and Chile.

Winemaker Stephanie Stanley is knocking it out of the park at Peak Cellars in Lake Country, where Chardonnay, Riesling and Pinot Noir are beginning to make a name for a region basking in cooler sites now very much in demand by high-end winegrowers. Stanley’s take on Pinot Gris, Gruner Veltliner, and Riesling will have you running to the onsite liquor store for your personal wine stash.

The region of Ventoux in the Rhone Valley will put its best foot forward courtesy of Château Pesquié. The bio-dynamic producer will pour an array of traditional wines including Terrasses Ventoux Blanc, Edition 1912 Rouge, Terrasses Ventoux Rouge and the signature Château Pesquié Quintessence. It is easily one of the best lineups in the room.

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The Garzón Valley, Uruguay, is a fascinating terroir where Albarino and Tannat have become unlikely bedfellows at Bodega Garzón. Less than 30 kilometres inland from the cold Atlantic Ocean, this winery has set a new level for Uruguayan and South American wines. It’s a must-stop on any visit to the tasting room.

Valley Commons celebrates our province from two of Canada’s most fertile valleys: the Fraser and the Okanagan. The winery comes with big ambitions driven by a former life in international volleyball played across Europe. Co-owner Kyla Richey sees the Euro model as slowing down life, inviting all to celebrate the art of living through wine and food. It is also the catalyst for connection and friendship, spawning the winery tag line: “Where We Gather.” You are encouraged to stop by the booth and learn of their aspirations to become an integral part of the B.C. wine scene.

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Winemaker Ernst Loosen has been a tireless proponent of Riesling throughout his long career, and he also has a special affection for Pinot Noir. The Dr. Loosen / Villa Wolf booth will be pouring a series of top-flight German Riesling and Pinot Noir that will delight your palate.

Frind Estate Winery is a relative newcomer to the Okanagan Valley, opening up lakeside in West Kelowna on the Bennett family compound during the pandemic. Senior winemaker Eric Von Krosigk will be pouring a selection of his Premier series wines. He would be more than happy to explain all that is happening at the West Kelowna winery and their expansive plans for the future.

Haywire co-founder, owner and Okanagan legend Christine Coletta will be in town to pour her organic wines at the Haywire booth. Coletta is fast becoming a legend of innovation and leadership in the valley and one of the most intelligent people I know in the wine business. Don’t miss a chance to chat with Coletta about organics, natural winemaking and where to go in Summerland.

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Englishman Michael Kullmann is the winemaker/COO at Osoyoos Larose. The French-owned winery is a south Okanagan superstar that focuses on two wines, the Osoyoos Larose Grand Vin and its second wine, Petales. Both wines reflect two decades of intensive agriculture, and the work continues on one of the Okanagan’s best wines for ageing. I’m sure Kullmann would be delighted to bring you up to date on the winery’s latest plans.

Ray Signorello is still a year out from reopening his Napa Valley winery that burned to the ground amid the Napa/Atlas Mountain 2017 wildfire. However, his vineyard remained unscathed. Get the full story from Signorello and discover his latest red wine offering: S.

Have you heard of Bodegas Altolandon? How about Mil Historias Bobal? Does Manchuela, Spain, ring a bell. I thought not. Discovering new things is the foundation of the wine festival. Vancouverites have been expanding their wine knowledge for 43 years, not to mention having a lot of fun learning about new wineries, new people and new wines.

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Stags’ Leap Winery is making exceptional wines under winemaker Christophe Paubert, who is as exacting as he is artisanal. The fun of wine is the history, something Stags’ Leap has in spades. After decades of multiple owners via Mexican land grants, the Grigsby family consolidated a 700-acre parcel where the Stags’ Leap planted its first grapes in 1872 and where the estate resides today. Don’t miss the Petite Sirah.

Rocca delle Macìe has a long history of pouring wine at the festival, and Marco Toti returns to tell the story of the Zingarelli family, from films to Chianti Classico Gran Selezione. If you are heading to Tuscany, this booth is a must-stop to chat about the wines and the hospitality options available to visitors at Rocca delle Macìe.

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Cascina Galarin has been a recent and delightful discovery for me. It is a classic example of what a modern thinking Piemonte winery can achieve when excellence is part of your mantra. The cellar was built in the 1700s. At the time, they carved a rooster in the winery door, a door that still exists, and led to its name and logo. The property sold its grapes to other wineries until the late 1980s, when the family began to bottle its fruit onsite. Taste all wines before you leave this booth.

After taking time off to be with her young family, winemaker Amber Pratt has returned to the wine business. The former C.C Jentsch winemaker has taken her magic touch to Moraine Estate Winery on the Naramata Bench. Pratt has a strong resume of delicious Syrah releases, but do not miss tasting her latest Pinot Gris; it will be among the best you taste across B.C. this year.

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In 1935, on the 100th anniversary of the founding of González Byass, the company’s head of marketing designed a series of icons using bottles from the winery dressed in different outfits. The Tío Pepe icon stood out from the rest in a wide-brimmed hat and red Andalusian jacket. That label is now present in over 100 countries and has become one of the most iconic figures in the history of advertising and one of the most recognized Spanish brands. Stop by this booth for the story of Sherry.

The Marqués de Riscal city of Wine, located in Elciego (Álava), explores the bodega’s history from its foundation in 1858 to the modern day. The festival booth will be much more modest pouring wines that tell today’s story through Riscal’s Rueda, Rosato, Rioja Reserva and a Gran Reserva Rioja labels. In addition, expect a brief master class in Tempranillo and Rioja that transports you to one of Spain’s most revitalized wine regions.

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La Frenz winemaker Jeff Martin has been making wine since he graduated from high school in the ’70s. His formative wine training began at Australia’s legendary McWilliams Winery before eventually making his way to Naramata; Jeff and his partner Niva opened La Frenz on the Naramata Bench in 1999. Since then, the winery has garnered two Best Performing Small Winery of the Year wins at The National Wine Awards of Canada and finished second overall among the 100-plus wineries competing in 2021. La Frenz wines are often sold out early in the season, so use the festival to meet the team and secure a supply of their most sought-after wines before they are gone.

Phantom Creek Estates rounds out our 20 festival highlights as they make their festival debut showing a selection of premium B.C. wines. Winemakers Mark Beringer and Oliver Humbrecht are turning heads around the international wine world. We suggest you try all four pours: The Estate Petite Cuvee, the Kobau Cuvee, the Pinot Gris and the Riesling. You won’t be disappointed.

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